Crane.



PATENTED JULY 2'1, 190s. J. MATTHEWS.

.GRANE. APPLIOATION FILED NOV. 10, ).902.

z SHEETS-SHEET 2.

N0 MODEL.

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Unire Sterns Patented July 21, 1903,

JOSEPH MATTHEVS, OF LIVERPOOL, ENGLAND.

o aA N E.

SPECIFICATION'forming part of Letters Patent No. 734,187, dated uly 21, 1903.

Application led November 10,1902. Serial No. 130.753. (No modeld To (LZ-Z whom, zit may concern:

Be 1t known that I, JOSEPH ll/IATTHEWS, en-

gineer, a subject of the King of Great Britain,

in which floor-space is limited and valuable and which is capable of reaching into embayrnents or lean-tos or between pillars and the like in a large shed.

The crane is mounted on an overhead carriage running on rails near the roof of the shed, and beneath this carriage at one point is hung a pillar upon which is a jib. Motors are provided for traversing the carriage, turning the pillar and jib, and operating a winch for winding up and paying out.

the cable and hook.

The invention will be described with reference to the accompanying drawings, in which- Figure l is an elevation of the traveling carriage and crane. Fig. 2 is a plan view of Fig.' l. Fig. 3 is a vertical section of the ring contact device in the head of the cranepillar. Fig. 4 is a plan view of said contact device'with the top removed, and Fig. 5 is a plan view of one-half the head or cap. Fig. 6 is an elevation in section of a safety device for preventing the pillar from falling in case the bearing or the driving wheel should break. Fig. '7 shows in plan two parts of the safety device. Fig. 8 is a plan view of the slip-wheel, and Fig. 9 is an elevation of the means for supporting the crane.

The apparatus comprises a carriage 1,which is made of angle-irons and girders riveted together in the manner usual in overhead cranes. Rail-tracks 2 are mounted near the lroof of the shed on girders 3 and brackets 4 .A motor 6, mountedon the carriage, drivesa shaft 7 by means of pinion 8 and toothed wheel 9. Shaft 7 has on each end a miterwheel 10,v gearing with ruiter-wheels 11 on two cross-shafts 12 13, which are supported in brach-ets 17 and the end pieces of the carriage 1. .Each shaft 12 13 carries a pinion 14 on each end. Pinions le on shaft 13 gear directly with toothed wheels 15 on the rollerwheels 5; but pinions leon shaft 12 drive the toothed wheels l5 on the wheels 5 at the other end of the carriage through an interposed cog-wheel 16, whereby the direction of rotation of the d rive is made the same for all the four wheels 5.

On the carriage is pivotally mounted the crane. This consists of a large hollow pillar 18, preferably of cast-iron, which fits in a bearing 19 in the carriage 1. On the top of the pillar is a toothed wheel 20, by which the crane is turned. This is preferably made in halves bolted togetheraround the head of the pillar. In this case each half has a tongue 21, which ts in a groove 22 in the pillarhead, Fig. 8. i Beneath the wheel 20is a conical bearing-ring 23, and a corresponding ring 2.4 is fixed on the carriage above the bearing 19.

or rings 26 27. The weight of the crane and of its load is borne by these rollers and bearingrings, which allow the crane to be turned freely when required. The'mechanism shown for turning the crane is a motor 28, mounted on the carriage 1 and driving the wheel 20 through a pinion 29, toothed wheel 30, bevel wheels 3l and 32, and pinion 33. It will of course be evident that any other suitable mechanism maybe employed for gearing the toothed wheel 2O with the motor 28. In order to provide for the support of the crane-pillar in case the wheel 2O or part of the rollerbearing should give way, a second groove 34, Fig. G, is formed in the pillar 18, and when erecting the crane the pillar is pushed upward beyond its ultimate position, and two half-rings 35, Fig. 7, of steel or wrought-iron, are slippedinto the groove 34, and as the pillar is lowered they come into a groove 36 in the top of the bear-in g 19. When the roller- Between these two bearing-surfaces are aset of rollers 25, mounted between two hoops roo` bearing (25, zc.,) is adjusted, the half-rings lie in the groove4 36 clear of the pillar, as

` seen in Fig. 6; but should the wheel 20 or the bearing break or fail the pillar only drops a fraction of an inch and is then supported by the halt-rings.

The jib consists of two -steel strips 37, secured to the Foot of the pillar 18 and having two angle-pieces on their inner faces, between which bracing-ties 3S arefixed. At the end of the jib is pulley 39. The jib issupported from the `head of the pillar by tie-rods 40, and the cable 41 is preferably secured, as shown, at the end of the jib and passed under a hookblock 43 before being taken over pulley 39 to the winch 42. The winch 42 isdriven by worml gearing 44 from a motor 45, which latter is ol' bent brackets 46.

` it from rotating.

supported, together with the winch, on a pair Al the rear of the pillar isinounted a casting 47, which is stayed to the base of the pillar by two posts 48. On the casting is arranged ablock 49, having three, four, or anydesired number of conical rollers 73 thereon. These rollers work on'an inverted conical track and take the backthrust of the jib and load. The block 4) may be set up and adjusted by means offsetscrews 5l.

72 represents the door over which the crane works. l

. The crane isdriven electrically. Two wires 5LB-one positive and the other negativeare mounted on the tie-beams of the roof or on other convenient cross-pieces. A standard 53. on the frame of the carriage has two spring-strips 54 fixed in its upper end, and shoes 55 on the ends of these strips slide on the .wires 52. The collectors 55 are connected by suitable leads to a set of conductors 57, mounted in a head-piece 56 ou the pillar 18, which is seen in Figs. 3, 4, and 5. The headpiecc 56 is supported by two cross-rods 58, Figs. 2, 3 and 9, which are held at fthe ends in brackets on the frame of the carriage 1. These rods besides supporting the head-piece hold it rigidly'in the pillar-head and prevent Each of thc wires from the collector is passed through insulation-blocks 74 in the head-piece 56 and ends in a conducting-ring 60. In the head-piece shown there are eight wires and eight contact-rings 60. On each of these rings is mounted a twopart conductor 6l, which is capable of turning around the ring and which has an arm 62 at one side. This arm projects through a cylindrical insulator into a ferrule 63,screwed through the wall of a cylinder 64, fixed in the head of the pillar 18. Only one such conductor 61 and ferrule 63 are shown in Fig. 3,

but one conductor is mounted on each contact-ring 60, and the arms 62 project into ferrules in the sides of thev cylinder 64, as shown in plan in Fig. 4.. The head-piece 56, contact-rings 60, and insulating-blocks 74 are held together by a bolt"75, head 76, and nut 77. A wire 65 is connected to each arm G2, and each wire is led down the pillar 'to a fuse-box 66 and controlling and reversing switches 67. l

68 represents resistance-boxes, to each of which one of the wires .passes before vreaching the controlling and reversing switches G7.

T here is no novelty in the electric controlling system, and of course any other system might be adopted without departing from the scope ot the invention. In the arrangement shown there are eight wires; but if more were required the head-piece 56 would be en-v larged, as required. 0f these eight wires one conveys current for the jib-motor 45, two others carry the positive currents Afor the field-magnets of the motors 6 and 28, four more lead to and from the armatures of the motors 6 and 28, and the last isa general reright of the right-hand rail-track and up to the left wall 7l; but the crane might also be hung in other positions on the carriage, depending on the plan ofthe sheds and the work to be done. The crane might also be used as a supplement to any known form of travel- .ing overhead crane or for transferring loads from one crane to another.

The motors may be of any suitable known type, and, if required, they may be arranged in diierent positions from those shown.

I declare that what I claim is'- 1. In a traveling crane, the combination of a traveling carriage; a pair of overhead r'ails therefor;l a pillar; means for revolubly snp- IDO TIO

porting theuppcr end ofsaid pillar in the carriage; a jib attached to the part of said pillar below the carriage; a cable and liftingtackle on said jib; means for traversing the carriage on the overhead rails; independent means for revolving the pillar; and independent means for operating the cable and lifting-tackle.

2. In a traveling crane, the combination of a traveling carriage; a pair of overhead rails therefor; a pillar; means for revolubly supporting said pillar in the carriage; a. jib attached to said pillar; a. cable 'aifd liftingtackle on said jib; electric means for traversing the carriage; independent electric means for revolving the pillar; independent electricmeans for operating the cable and lifting-tackle; and cnecentral control for all said independent means.'

3. In a traveling crane, the combination of a source of electric current; a traveling car- 73ans? riage; a pillar revolubl57 supported on said carriage; a jib von said pillar; a cable and lifting-tackle on said jib; an electric motor for traversing the'carriage; a second electric motor for revolving the pillar; a third electric motor for operating the cable 4and liftingtackle; a central control on said pillar for said motors; .and sliding contacts on said pillar,said sliding contacts connecting the source .of electric current to the central control, and

the central control to the several motors.

4'. In atraveling crane, the combination of a source of electric current; atraveling carriage; a pillar revolubly supported'ron said l carriage; a jib on lsaid pillar; a cable and lifting-tackle on said ji'b; an electric motor for traversing the carriage; asecond electric motor for revolving the pillar; athird electric motor for' operating thelifting-tackle; a

centralcontrol; a head-piece in` thepillarv and xed to the carriage; a plurality of susaid headlpiece, eachl ring pei-imposed metal rings, insulated one from the other, connected'to .and stationary on being connected with the source of current or one of the motors; a second set of superimposed metal `rings, insulated. one from the other, encir.v

cling and slidably mounted on said 'stationary rings, moving with said pillar, and each being connected to the central control, substantially as he'reinbefore set forth.

5. In a hangingjibi'crane, the combination of a traveling carri-age a pillar; con-ical rollerbearings snpportingsaid pillar onl said carto the -weight of thejiif" mage; a jib on' said rpilhir;.means on said pillarl for counteractinv the back thrust due; conical roller-bean-` L lngs onsuch counteractlng means yand means for compensating the wear of the said latter conical roller-bearings, as set forth.

6. In a hanging jib-crane, the combination of a traveling carriage; a pillar; conical rollerbearings supporting said pillar on said carriage; a circular track on the under part of the'carriage; a backstay on the pillar below the carriage; adjustable conical roller-bearings on said backstay for bearing upward against said circular track; and means for radially adjusting said bearings.

7. In a hanging jib-crane, the combination f ,said pillar having a groove formed therein;

elevated means for revolubly t0 bear on lthe supporting the top of said pillar, said means likewise hav- A ing a recess formed therein; and a pair of half-rings adapted to lie in said grooveand recess, whereby the pillar Will be supportedif the bearing gives way. 1

e In Witness whereof I have hereunto signed my name, this 30th day of October, 1902, in

' the presence of two subscribing witnesses.

l JOSEPHMATIHEWS.

Witnesses: f i Y f HUBERT A. GILL,

FRED. PJEvANs. 

